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BBC Classics
Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, Elizabeth Gaskell, Katherine Press (Read by), Carolyn Pickles (Read by), Clare Corbett (Read by)

BBC Classics

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre & Cranford

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Summary

Unabridged readings of three of the greatest novels of all time

This timeless collection brings together three of the finest works in the literary canon, read in full by some of the very best audiobook narrators. With over 38 hours of unmissable storytelling, tracked by chapter so you can easily find your place, this is the ideal way to enjoy these classic masterpieces.

Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen's universally acknowledged romance charts the love story between pretty, witty Elizabeth Bennett and handsome, arrogant Fitzwilliam Darcy. Read by Clare Corbett.

Jane Eyre
Orphan Jane falls head over heels in love with the brooding, mysterious Mr Rochester in Charlotte Brontë's coming-of-age classic about secrets and lies. Read by Katherine Press.

Cranford
Elizabeth Gaskell's much-loved portrait of life in a Cheshire town and its female inhabitants, as they cope with the impact of change on their small world. Read by Carolyn Pickles.


Credits:

Pride and Prejudice
Read by Clare Corbett
Produced by Justine Willett
First broadcast on BBC Sounds, 24 August 2019

Jane Eyre
Read by Katherine Press
Produced by Anne Bunting
First broadcast on BBC Sounds, 24 August 2019

Cranford
Read by Carolyn Pickles
Produced by Julian Wilkinson
First broadcast on BBC Sounds, 1 November 2019


(p) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd
© 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

About the authors

Jane Austen

Jane Austen, the daughter of a clergyman, was born in Hampshire in 1775, and later lived in Bath and the village of Chawton. As a child and teenager, she wrote brilliantly witty stories for her family's amusement, as well as a novella, Lady Susan. Her first published novel was Sense and Sensibility, which appeared in 1811 and was soon followed by Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park and Emma. Austen died in 1817, and Persuasion and Northanger Abbey were published posthumously in 1818.
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Charlotte Brontë

Charlotte Brontë was born on 21 April 1816. Her father was curate of Haworth, Yorkshire, and her mother died when she was five years old, leaving five daughters and one son. In 1824 Charlotte, Maria, Elizabeth and Emily were sent to Cowan Bridge, a school for clergymen's daughters, where Maria and Elizabeth both caught tuberculosis and died. The children were taught at home from this point on and together they created vivid fantasy worlds which they explored in their writing. Charlotte worked as a teacher from 1835 to 1838 and then as a governess. In 1846, along with Emily and Anne, Charlotte published Poems by Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell.After this Emily wrote Wuthering Heights, Anne wrote Agnes Grey and Charlotte wrote The Professor. Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey were both published but Charlotte's novel was initially rejected. In 1847 Jane Eyre became her first published novel and met with immediate success. Between 1848 and 1849 Charlotte lost her remaining siblings: Emily, Branwell and Anne. She published Shirley in 1849, Villette in 1853 and in 1854 she married the Rev. Arthur Bell Nicholls. She died the next year, on 31 March 1855.
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Elizabeth Gaskell

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